Pam Stewart named Florida's education commissioner

Pam Stewart, who is in her second stint as interim commissioner, will get the job permanently, the State Board of Education decided Tuesday in a meeting in West Palm Beach.

She’s been in the spot this time since Tony Bennett, who previously led Indiana’s education system, resigned Aug. 20 after less than eight months on the job.

Stewart will oversee a department that has been criticized in recent years for the complicated school grading system that even members of the Board of Education say is flawed. The state plans to overhaul the system by 2015, when schools have fully switched to a nationwide curriculum known as Common Core.

“This is a new day,” Stewart said. “It’s time to move forward, and I’m prepared to provide the leadership needed,” she said.